Quran, listen ,read translation, understand & act

Surah Al-Infitar: 82

Leave a comment

Translation in Urdu, English, footnotes and summary

بِسْمِ اللّٰهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْمِ

اِذَا السَّمَآءُ انۡفَطَرَتۡ ۙ﴿۱﴾ وَ اِذَا الۡکَوَاکِبُ انۡتَثَرَتۡ ۙ﴿۲﴾ وَ اِذَا الۡبِحَارُ فُجِّرَتۡ ﴿ۙ۳﴾ وَ اِذَا الۡقُبُوۡرُ بُعۡثِرَتۡ ۙ﴿۴﴾ عَلِمَتۡ نَفۡسٌ مَّا قَدَّمَتۡ وَ اَخَّرَتۡ ؕ﴿۵﴾ یٰۤاَیُّہَا الۡاِنۡسَانُ مَا غَرَّکَ بِرَبِّکَ الۡکَرِیۡمِ ۙ﴿۶﴾ الَّذِیۡ خَلَقَکَ فَسَوّٰىکَ فَعَدَلَکَ ۙ﴿۷﴾ فِیۡۤ اَیِّ صُوۡرَۃٍ مَّا شَآءَ رَکَّبَکَ ؕ﴿۸﴾ کَلَّا بَلۡ تُکَذِّبُوۡنَ بِالدِّیۡنِ ۙ﴿۹﴾ وَ اِنَّ عَلَیۡکُمۡ لَحٰفِظِیۡنَ ﴿ۙ۱۰﴾ کِرَامًا کَاتِبِیۡنَ ﴿ۙ۱۱﴾ یَعۡلَمُوۡنَ مَا تَفۡعَلُوۡنَ ﴿۱۲﴾ اِنَّ الۡاَبۡرَارَ لَفِیۡ نَعِیۡمٍ ﴿ۚ۱۳﴾ وَ اِنَّ الۡفُجَّارَ لَفِیۡ جَحِیۡمٍ ﴿ۚۖ۱۴﴾ یَّصۡلَوۡنَہَا یَوۡمَ الدِّیۡنِ ﴿۱۵﴾ وَ مَا ہُمۡ عَنۡہَا بِغَآئِبِیۡنَ ﴿ؕ۱۶﴾ وَ مَاۤ اَدۡرٰىکَ مَا یَوۡمُ الدِّیۡنِ ﴿ۙ۱۷﴾ ثُمَّ مَاۤ اَدۡرٰىکَ مَا یَوۡمُ الدِّیۡنِ ﴿ؕ۱۸﴾ یَوۡمَ لَا تَمۡلِکُ نَفۡسٌ لِّنَفۡسٍ شَیۡئًا ؕ وَ الۡاَمۡرُ یَوۡمَئِذٍ لِّلّٰہِ ﴿٪۱۹﴾

اللہ کے نام سے جو رحمان و رحیم ہے۔

جب آسمان پھٹ جائے گا، اور جب تارے بکھر جائیں گے، اور جب سمندر پھاڑ دیے جائیں گے1، اور جب قبریں کھول دی جائیں2 گی، اُس وقت ہر شخص کو اُس کا اگلا پچھلا سب کیا دھرا معلوم ہو جائے3 گا۔
اے انسان، کس چیز نے تجھے اپنے اُس ربّ ِ کریم کی طرف سے دھوکے میں ڈال دیا جس نے تجھے پیدا کیا، تجھے نِک سُک سے درست کیا، تجھے متناسِب بنایا، اور جس صورت میں چاہا تجھ کو جوڑ کر تیار کیا4؟ ہر گز نہیں5، بلکہ ﴿اصل بات یہ ہے کہ ﴾ تم لوگ جزا و سزا کو جھُٹلاتے6 ہو، حالانکہ تم پر نگراں مقرر ہیں، ایسے معزز کاتب جو تمہارے ہر فعل کو جانتے ہیں7۔
یقیناً نیک لوگ مزے میں ہوں گے اور بے شک بدکار لوگ جہنّم میں جائیں گے ۔ جزا کے دن وہ اس میں داخل ہوں گے اور اُس سے ہر گز غائب نہ ہو سکیں گے۔ اور تم کیا جانتے ہو کہ وہ جزا کا دن کیا ہے؟ ہاں، تمہیں کیا خبر کہ وہ جزا کا دن کیا ہے؟ یہ وہ دن ہے جب کسی شخص کے لیے کچھ کرنا کسی کے بس میں نہ ہوگا8، فیصلہ اُس دن بالکل اللہ کے اختیار میں ہو گا۔ ؏١

In the name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful.

When the sky is split asunder, and when the stars are scattered, and when the seas are burst forth, and when the graves are overturned — at that time every soul will know what it sent ahead and what it left behind.

O man, what has deceived you concerning your Generous Lord, who created you, proportioned you, gave you due symmetry, and assembled you in whatever form He willed? No indeed! Rather, you deny the Judgment — even though there are watchers appointed over you, noble scribes who know everything you do.

Indeed, the righteous will be in bliss, and indeed the wicked will be in Hell. They will enter it on the Day of Judgment, and they will never be absent from it. And what can make you know what the Day of Judgment is? Again, what can make you know what the Day of Judgment is? It is the Day when no soul will have power to do anything for another — and the command, that Day, will belong entirely to Allah.

more literal, word-for-word English translation alongside this idiomatic one —

Here’s a more literal, verse-by-verse rendering alongside the idiomatic one, for a parallel-text layout:

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

1. إِذَا السَّمَاءُ انفَطَرَتْ When the sky is cleft asunder,

2. وَإِذَا الْكَوَاكِبُ انتَثَرَتْ And when the stars fall, scattering,

3. وَإِذَا الْبِحَارُ فُجِّرَتْ And when the seas are made to burst forth (or: are merged/overflow into one another),

4. وَإِذَا الْقُبُورُ بُعْثِرَتْ And when the graves are overturned (their contents scattered forth),

5. عَلِمَتْ نَفْسٌ مَّا قَدَّمَتْ وَأَخَّرَتْ Every soul will know what it has sent forward and what it has left behind.

6. يَا أَيُّهَا الْإِنسَانُ مَا غَرَّكَ بِرَبِّكَ الْكَرِيمِ O man! What has deluded/deceived you concerning your Lord, the Generous?

7. الَّذِي خَلَقَكَ فَسَوَّاكَ فَعَدَلَكَ Who created you, then fashioned you in due proportion, then gave you balance/symmetry,

8. فِي أَيِّ صُورَةٍ مَّا شَاءَ رَكَّبَكَ In whatever form He willed, He assembled/composed you.

9. كَلَّا بَلْ تُكَذِّبُونَ بِالدِّينِ No indeed! Rather, you deny/belie the Judgment (or: the Recompense, the Religion).

10. وَإِنَّ عَلَيْكُمْ لَحَافِظِينَ And indeed, over you are appointed guardians (watchers),

11. كِرَامًا كَاتِبِينَ Noble, writing (recorders),

12. يَعْلَمُونَ مَا تَفْعَلُونَ They know whatever you do.

13. إِنَّ الْأَبْرَارَ لَفِي نَعِيمٍ Indeed, the righteous/pious will be in bliss (delight),

14. وَإِنَّ الْفُجَّارَ لَفِي جَحِيمٍ And indeed, the wicked/sinful will be in a blazing Fire.

15. يَصْلَوْنَهَا يَوْمَ الدِّينِ They will enter/burn in it on the Day of Judgment,

16. وَمَا هُمْ عَنْهَا بِغَائِبِينَ And they will not be absent from it.

17. وَمَا أَدْرَاكَ مَا يَوْمُ الدِّينِ And what can make you know what the Day of Judgment is?

18. ثُمَّ مَا أَدْرَاكَ مَا يَوْمُ الدِّينِ Again, what can make you know what the Day of Judgment is?

19. يَوْمَ لَا تَمْلِكُ نَفْسٌ لِّنَفْسٍ شَيْئًا ۖ وَالْأَمْرُ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِّلَّهِ The Day when no soul will have power to do anything for another soul, and the command/decision, that Day, will belong to Allah (alone).

A few translator’s notes that may be useful for your layout:

  • فُجِّرَتْ (v.3): root ف-ج-ر (fajara — to burst/gush forth), same root as “Fajr.” Classical commentators read it as the seas bursting their boundaries and merging into one — some render it “burst forth,” others “made to overflow.”
  • بُعْثِرَتْ (v.4): root ب-ع-ث-ر — to scatter, turn over, dig up. Captures graves being turned inside-out, their contents brought to the surface.
  • غَرَّكَ (v.6): from غرور (ghurūr — delusion, vain deception) — the same root behind “al-gharoor” as a name/attribute of Shaytan’s deception. “Deluded” often captures it better than “deceived,” since it implies a false sense of security rather than an external trick.
  • الدِّينِ (v.9, 15, 17, 18): literally “the Din” — carries the dual sense of “religion/way of life” and “judgment/recompense.” Most translators render it “the Judgment” or “the Recompense” in this surah’s context.

FOOTE NOTES/ TAFSEER

Here’s the translation of this footnote:

Surah Al-Infitar, Footnote No. 1

In Surah At-Takwir it is stated that the seas will be set ablaze, while here it is stated that the seas will be split/burst asunder. If the two verses are read together — and it is also kept in mind that, according to the Qur’an, on the Day of Judgment there will occur a tremendous earthquake that will not be confined to any one region but will shake the entire earth simultaneously — then the manner of the seas splitting and catching fire becomes understandable to us as follows: first, because of this immense earthquake, the beds of the seas will split open, and their water will begin to descend into that inner part of the earth where an intensely hot molten lava is perpetually boiling. Then, upon reaching this lava, the water will decompose into its two constituent elements — one of which, oxygen, sustains combustion, and the other, hydrogen, is itself combustible — and thus a continuous chain reaction of decomposition and ignition will begin, as a result of which all the seas of the world will catch fire. This is our conjecture; beyond this, true knowledge belongs to none but Allah Almighty.

A couple of translator’s notes for your reference:

  • قیاس (qiyās) here I’ve rendered as “conjecture” — Maududi is explicitly flagging this as his own reasoned inference, not a definitive tafsir claim, which is why he closes with the disclaimer that only Allah possesses true knowledge of the matter.
  • The scientific framing (oxygen/hydrogen decomposition, chain reaction) reflects Maududi’s characteristic style of offering a naturalistic hypothesis for eschatological imagery while explicitly bracketing it as speculative.

Surah Al-Infitar, Footnote No. 2

The first three verses mention the first phase of the Resurrection, and this verse describes the second phase. The “opening of the graves” refers to people being raised back to life anew.

Surah Al-Infitar, Footnote No. 3

The original words are mā qaddamat wa akhkharat (“what it sent forward and what it left behind/held back”). These words can carry several meanings, and all of them are intended here:

  1. Whatever good or bad deed a person did and sent ahead is mā qaddamat, and whatever he refrained from doing is mā akhkharat. In this sense, these words correspond roughly to the English terms “commission” and “omission.”
  2. Whatever he did earlier is mā qaddamat, and whatever he did later is mā akhkharat — meaning a person’s entire record of deeds will be presented before him in chronological, sequential order.
  3. The good and bad deeds a person performed in his lifetime are mā qaddamat, and the effects and consequences of those deeds that he left behind him in human society are mā akhkharat.

Footnote No. 4:

That is: first, the demand made by the favor and generosity of this Beneficent Sustainer was that you should have become grateful and appreciative, submitting to Him, and that you should have felt ashamed to disobey Him. But you fell into the delusion that whatever you have become, you became by yourself — and it never occurred to you to acknowledge the favor of the One who granted you this existence. Second, it is a mercy of your Lord that in this world you go on doing whatever you wish, and it does not happen that the moment you commit some fault, He strikes you with paralysis, or blinds your eyes, or sends down lightning upon you. But you mistook this generosity for weakness, and fell into the delusion that in your God’s dominion there is no such thing as justice.

Footnote No. 5:

That is: there is no reasonable ground for falling into this delusion. Your very existence testifies that you did not make yourself; nor did your parents make you; nor did you come to be a human being by the mere accidental combination of elements — rather, a Wise and All-Powerful God fashioned and assembled you into this complete human form. Before you exist creatures of every kind, in comparison with which your superior structure and your nobler, more excellent faculties stand plainly evident. Reason demanded that, seeing this, your head should have bowed under the weight of gratitude, and that you should never have dared to disobey this Generous Lord. You also know that your Lord is not only Merciful and Generous but also Mighty and Overpowering. When an earthquake, storm, or flood comes from Him, all your schemes fail before it. You also know that your Lord is not ignorant or foolish but Wise and Knowing — and the inevitable demand of wisdom and knowledge is that whoever is given reason should also be held responsible for his deeds; that whoever is given powers should be called to account for how he used them; and that whoever is given, on his own responsibility, the power to do good or evil, should be rewarded for good and punished for evil. All these realities stand before you as clear as broad daylight, so you cannot claim that there exists any reasonable ground for the delusion into which you have fallen regarding your Generous Lord. When you yourself are someone’s superior, you regard as base that subordinate who, mistaking your decency and gentleness for weakness, becomes overbearing toward you. Your own nature, therefore, is sufficient testimony that a master’s kindness should never become a reason for a servant to grow bold against him and fall into the misconception that “I may do whatever I wish; no one can touch me.”

Surah Al-Infitar, Footnote No. 6

That is: what has actually deluded you people is not any reasonable argument, but merely your foolish notion that behind this world — this “abode of deeds” — there is no “abode of recompense.” It is this false and baseless assumption that has made you heedless of God, unafraid of His justice, and irresponsible in your moral conduct.

Footnote No. 7:

That is: whether you people deny the abode of recompense, or belie it, or mock it — this does not change the reality. The reality is that your Lord has not left you in this world like camels without reins; rather, He has appointed over every single one of you thoroughly honest watchers, who are recording all your good and bad deeds with complete impartiality, and from whom none of your actions is hidden — whether you commit them in darkness, in private, in desolate wildernesses, or in any other state where you feel fully assured that what you have done has remained concealed from the sight of creation. For these watching angels, Allah has used the words kirāman kātibīn — “noble scribes” — meaning recorders who are karīm (most dignified and honorable). They hold neither personal love nor enmity toward anyone, such that they might show undue favor to one and unjust hostility to another and thereby produce a false record. Nor are they treacherous, that they should make careless, incorrect entries without being present at their duty. Nor are they bribable, that they should, in exchange for some gain, write false reports for or against someone. Their station is elevated above all such moral weaknesses — so both the righteous and the wicked among mankind can rest assured that every person’s good deeds will be recorded in full, without diminishment, and that no evil will be attributed to anyone’s account which he did not actually commit. Then a second quality of these angels is mentioned: “they know whatever you do” — meaning their situation is not like that of worldly CID or intelligence agencies, from whom, despite all their effort, many things remain hidden. They are fully aware of everyone’s deeds; they are attached to every person, everywhere, in every state, in such a way that he does not even realize anyone is watching him — and they also know with what intention a person did any given act. Therefore, the record they compile is a complete record in which nothing has been left out. Concerning this very matter, it is stated in Surah Al-Kahf, verse 49, that on the Day of Judgment the guilty will be astonished to see that the record of deeds presented to them omits nothing, small or great — everything they did stands present before them, all accounted for.

Footnote No. 8:

That is: no one there will have the power to save anyone else from bearing the consequences of his deeds. There will be no one there so influential, or so powerful, or so favored by Allah, that he could intrude into the Divine court and say, “So-and-so is my relative or my protégé — he must be forgiven,” no matter what evil deeds he committed in the world.

NUTSHELL SUMMARY OF FOOT NOTES

Here’s a nutshell summary of the eight footnotes to Surah Al-Infitar:

  1. Seas bursting/ablaze — Maududi offers this as his own speculative (not definitive) scientific theory: the Resurrection’s global earthquake cracks the ocean floors, water reaches the earth’s molten core, decomposes into oxygen and hydrogen, and a chain reaction sets the seas ablaze. He stresses this is conjecture — only Allah knows the reality.
  2. Graves opened — This marks the second phase of Resurrection: humanity being physically raised back to life.
  3. “What it sent forward, what it left behind” — Three overlapping meanings: (a) acts done vs. acts omitted, (b) earlier deeds vs. later deeds in chronological order, (c) one’s own deeds vs. the lasting effects those deeds left on society.
  4. “What deceived you about your Generous Lord” — Man owed gratitude for being created, shaped, and perfected, but instead assumed he made himself. He also mistook God’s patience (not punishing every sin instantly) for weakness or absence of justice.
  5. “No indeed” — No excuse for that delusion. Man’s own design (compared to animals), and his own conduct as a “master” who despises a servant who abuses his kindness, prove that God’s generosity should provoke gratitude and accountability — not defiance. Wisdom logically requires that a being given reason and free will must also be held responsible.
  6. “You deny the Judgment” — The real root of the deception isn’t rational argument, but the baseless assumption that this world (the “abode of deeds”) has no follow-up “abode of recompense.” That false assumption breeds heedlessness of God, fearlessness of His justice, and moral irresponsibility.
  7. Noble recording angels — Denial doesn’t change reality: every person has honest, incorruptible angelic scribes recording every deed, in every circumstance — even in total secrecy — with perfect accuracy and full knowledge of intentions. Nothing is ever missed (cf. Surah Al-Kahf 18:49).
  8. “No soul has power for another” — On Judgment Day, no one — however powerful, influential, or beloved — will be able to intervene or shield another person from facing the consequences of his own deeds.

Leave a comment